Social Organization

Normally, we live in groups all of our lives. It is extremely unusual for us to be

in total isolation from other people for long. You may personally enjoy being
alone, however, your voluntary isolation probably does not last more than a
few hours or days at most. Our strong emotional need for social contact makes
it possible for us to live our life happily. The need for human social contact and
the rewards that it can bring lead most people to become members of many
groups at the same time. In fact, we are members of many groups at the same
time. We may be family members, employees of companies, citizens of towns,
and members of ethnic groups. Social organizations is represented by the
various parts of society where they function with one another and develops a
social activity and exercises a social will in giving individuals their proper place
and establishing the rights and privileges of groups as well as individuals.

A social group consists of individuals who are united by their similar

characteristics, and these characteristics serve as the bases of their constant
interaction. Barkada is an example for this group which refers to a group who
share the same social inclinations. Another classification of human grouping is
the social aggregate which is define as individuals that gather together in the
same place but are neither interacting nor sharing similar characteristics.
People gathered in a shopping mall is an example of this group. Next is the
social networks which means that it is a social structure consisting of people
who have varying degrees of relations and interrelationships. A sociogram is
an example of visual representation of this group which was developed by
Jacob Moreno, a psychotherapist, in 1951. Furthermore, there are three types
of social grouping namely: in-group, out-group and reference group. In-group
is a social group in which individuals directly affiliates and expresses loyalty to.
There are three primary characteristics of an in-group: 1. Members use titles,
external symbols, and dress to distinguish themselves from the out-group.
Jejemons and military groups are the examples wherein jejemons is popular
for their distinguishable dress code and language and military groups which
means that the bond that military personnel create with one another are
enhanced by their shared ideals, practices, and experiences. 2. Members apply
positive stereotypes to their in-group and negative stereotypes to the out-
group. 3. Members tend to clash or compete with members of the out-group.
This competition with the other group can also strengthen the unity within
each group. While out-group is the group that an individual is not part of.
LGBT community is an example of out-group. And reference group is
defined that the behavior of an individual can be shaped by the set of behavior
and beliefs of a group that such an individual considers as ideal. Another
groups are the primary and secondary groups. Primary groups are the direct
sources of an individual’s social skills and knowledge. and the small groups.
Family, friends, classmates, and church are the examples of primary groups.
Secondary groups are more formal in context as the relationships and
interaction in them are limited to a particular role that an individual plays
within the group. The relationships between a client and an agent, a
researcher and an informant, and a tenant and a landlord are the examples
of secondary groups. Small groups has also two types: the dyad and the triad.
Dyad is the most cohesive and directly interacting small group which consist
of two individuals while triad is a small group of three individuals that has
lesser cohesion than a dyad because of the lesser personal connection that each
individual has with the other members in the group. Another topic studied in
the context of social groups are the conformity and leadership. Conformity is
the behavior of an individual that relates to following the prescribed norms of
his or her group due to pressure or influence that members of the group have
him or her. And there are two types of leaders: an expressive leader and an
instrumental. Expressive leader is motivated by the relationships that he or
she has with the members of the groups. Instrumental leaders implement
a directive style of management, wherein members of the groups are directed
to perform tasks that lead to the achievement of the group goal. If there is a
social froups, there is also a social organization that consist of two types of
organization, the formal and informal organizations. It is a formal
organization if the secondary group is directed by its goals, this would
include groups such as political parties, and academic and professional
organizations. Within this formal organizations are informal organizations
that are characterized by the informal relations between members. It can be
said that the existence of organizations is attributable to the goals that are set
before them. To achieve this, organizations use rational planning. This
process implies identification of tasks, roles, implementation programs and
general policies. In studying organizations, there are two models of
organization that provide definitions and characterization of human groups,
this are the bureaucratic organization and collectivist organization model.
Bureaucratic Organizational Model is the type of organizational objectives.
And collectivist organization model responded to the issues that
confronted the bureaucratic model. Based on Karl Marx’s theory on the
evolution on the evolution of society, this model predicts the demise of
bureaucratic organization within a shift from class based to classless society.

The whole society is a big organization in which individual, groups, and

institutions participate. Different groups fit themselves in interaction with
other groups giving shape to society by organization. Social organization is the
product of social interaction among individuals, among groups, among
institutions, among classes, and among members of a family create social
organization. Our individual identities are greatly defined by the groups to
which we belong and by our position within them. In studying society, we can
observe various social groups and institutions, each with its specific functions.
The explanation above just made applies more especially to societies which are
somewhat developed. The essential idea in a social organization is permanency
of social relationships. Sometimes, such relations are produced by instinct,
sometimes by the pleasurable feelings and by the conscious appreciation of
certain advantages to such relationships. Social organization includes all sorts
of permanent relationships upon any basis.

Lesson: We should truly believe in the value of life and give care about all of
the weakest and most vulnerable members of society. The groups that we
belong in doesn’t define our our importance to the society.